Disclaimer:

Not mine, never was and I'm not making any money off this.

Author's note:

Second, slightly better (I think) attempt at a story for here. Sirius has given up revenge in favour of raising Harry, while James has returned as a ghost. Please read and review, all comments will be greatly appreciated.

Sirius slumped at the table eyes wandering across peeling paintwork. He contemplatively eyed the six pack of beer on the counter, wondering about waiting for Peter to come back before he cracked one open. They had been shifting between safe houses every couple of days ever since Dumbledore had cast the Fidelius, and Sirius had never been so bored in his entire life. Wormtail was fine enough to hangout with, but they just didn't share the same rapport that he did with James or Lupin. He gave a mournful sigh thinking about the werewolf. He'd been off trying to secure an alliance with the clans to little success and there was also the niggling suspicion at the back of his mind that maybe, just maybe, Remus would throw his lot in with the pack. He hated himself for thinking of his friend as a possible traitor, but too many packs had sided with the Dark Lord for them to not even consider the possibility.

"Damn it but I hate this war" he groused to no one in particular, wandering over to the window and twitching the curtain to one side. Still no sign of Peter. The fourth marauder had left nearly an hour ago to pick up some supplies, not long enough for Sirius to worry, but long enough for him to get bored. He began to pace up and down, casting another glance at the beer. "Sod it" he muttered to himself, fishing out a bottle and popping the cap. Sirius raised it in toast "James, Lilly and Harry, to your safety" he took a swig "I bet they're having more fun at Godric's Hollow than I am here anyway". The bottle paused halfway to his lips as he realised what he had just said.

"Oh fuck" the last word was cut off by a crack of apparition as he disappeared, the beer bottle dropping to smash on the floor of the now deserted flat.

Sirius re-appeared at the on the road in front of the Potter residence. Hitting the ground running, he hurdled the remains of the gate, wand in hand before pulling up short. A quick glance showed house and garden scarred by spell damage both defensive and offensive. He recognised the decapitated remains of several animated hedge sculptures that Lilly had charmed, a stone fountain that had been transfigured into a lion by James was left in two parts. The rest was unidentifiable but overlying everything was the distinct tang of dark magic that Sirius had become all too familiar with both while growing up in the Black house and since the rise of the Dark Lord. Everything seemed... Dead. A swish of his wand sent a patronus messenger away into the night.

He blended with the shadows as he made his way up the path, face impassive even as his mind screamed at him to sprint forwards and see what had happened to his best friend and his family. Too many times he had sped straight into trouble and last time he had nearly died. Sirius refused to put anyone who might be left alive inside because he couldn't learn a lesson as he strained every sense at the door way, desperate for any hint of what was going on inside. Nothing. He cast a noise and light maker inspired by the flash-bangs the muggles had used at the Iranian Embassy a few months before through the door way before diving through the window, rolling into a crouch with wand ready. Nothing but the slight ringing of his own spell.

The damage to the room made him catch his breath. He had spent several weeks with James and Lilly casting spells and casting runes on everything that could conceivably be used as a weapon against attack and a few things that couldn't. The inventiveness that had made them the cause of the exasperation for many of the teachers during their time at school had been put to deadly use and by the look of things, they had all been activated.

Well... shit. Sirius allowed himself to hope – maybe if everything had activated James and Lilly had escaped. They'd poke their heads out in a moment and everything would be ok. He saw the shoe through the doorway to the corridor that lead to the stairs up to the first floor. Please just be a shoe, please just be a shoe. There was still a foot in it, but no leg or body attached to the foot. The voice in his head began to scream and gibber. He recognised the shoe. He swallowed, ignoring the shoe and the voice, creeping out into the corridor. At the foot of the stair well was a distinctly James shaped shadow.

"Oh, shit..." Sirius made his way forwards, the voice in his head now quiet, giving up ranting for rocking backwards and forwards in a corner with it's head between it's knees, desperately trying to convince itself, himself, that this was all a mistake. He picked up his friend's wand from where it had rolled from lifeless fingers, stepping carefully over the corpse, avoiding the creaking stair second from the top.

There was a strange sound and a soft glow coming from the nursery. His wand led the way, remarkably steady for what he had just seen. Sirius took a quick peek around the splintered door frame, snatching his head back before he'd even had time to process the sight. His mind processed what he had seen and his face took on a sudden new expression that could only be described as confused. He looked again.

"Ja... James?" the silvery form turned towards him, the ghost of his friend crouched over the corpse of his wife, mercurial tears streaking his face.

"Siri... I can't even close her eyes... can't even pick him up..." the sadness in the wraith's voice was like nothing Sirius had ever heard, and he rushed forwards, dropping to his knees at his friend's side. Baby Harry was sat on the far side of Lilly's rocking back and forth, tears streaming down his face and a keening cry coming from his mouth, oblivious to the new comer until he was picked up and cradled close to Sirius' chest.

"Hush little one" he tried to soothe, wanting to do nothing more than join in the keening wail of loss, ignoring everything until someone, anyone else came along and told him what to do. "Hush now Harry" Sirius tried to wipe the blood from the toddlers face, eliciting an even louder scream as his fingers brushed a new wound on Harry's forehead, snatching his hand back with a curse as it seemed to sting at his fingers.

"Shitting death, that... that's one hell of a curse scar." he muttered. He looked back at his friend, who was still staring sadly down at his wife. "James" nothing "James old boy, we have to go, he could come back any minute." Finally a response and the ghost turned a sad smile towards him.

"He's not coming back."

"What do you mean?" Harry quieted slightly in Sirius' arms and James gave a small shrug.

"Something Lilly was working on – a protection spell. It must have worked, because I came back just as the Volde-twat was casting the killing curse at Harry and the damn thing just bounced off and took him out instead."

Sirius gave a low whistle. "Wow."

"Yep."

"She was some lady, your Lilly." They both looked down at the redheaded corpse, grief clear on both their faces. Sirius reached forwards and gently closed her eyes. "We still have to go" he said apologetically, slowly standing and making his way to the door, gently cradling his god son.

"That she was" whispered James, rising and drifting after him "that she was."

The two friends made their way back through the house, Sirius doubly careful with his precious cargo. They paused over James' one-footed corpse.

"Damn." Said James looking down at himself and the myriad of injuries that had been inflicted on him. He remembered the over powered severing curse that had been aimed at his stomach that he had dived through the living room doorway to avoid that had taken his foot; the necrotic curse that had clipped his left shoulder probably would have killed him anyway, he could see the darkened flesh that had stopped it's progress up his neck when he had died; could remember the taste of the blood he had coughed up after a well aimed percutio had pierced his lung; other cuts and bruises showed that James Potter had gone down fighting, the smear of blood from the door-way to the stairs showing that he had continued even after the final result was clear.

"He really fucked me up, huh?" Sirius choked out a half sob, the tears that had been flowing silently down his cheeks since leaving the nursery glistening in the faint light from the street. "Hey hey now, no need for that." The ghost tried and failed to pat his friend on the shoulder, causing him to shiver involuntarily at the strange feeling of the ghostly appendage passing through him. He gave a small apologetic smile and a shrug. His gentle tone continued "Take a minute if you need to. I'm pretty sure Lilly left a couple of tampons upstairs you can enlarge if you're going to insist on being a giant pussy about all this."

Sirius stared at him, horrified expression on his face.

"What?" He shrugged defensively. "I'm the one that died." Sirius began shaking his head in disgust.

"Too soon."

"You're right. It's too soon for you to be a complete wreck before you've gotten my son to safety. Now dry your eyes princess, zip up your man suit and let's go before we get any more visitors this evening."

"Dick." Was Sirius' only reply as he brushed the tears from his face.

"Things that you like?" queried James and earning a choked laugh sob from Sirius as they arrived in the front room. They paused moment, re-assessing the damage.

"Shit" assessed James, now able to truly see the damage that had been caused.

"Shit" confirmed Sirius. An easily recognised shape burst through the ruined doorway waving an umbrella like a sword.

"Shit" whispered Hagrid taking in the scene of chaos, the ghost and the figure of Sirius cradling Harry. The three men locked eyes with each other and then looked back around the room.

"Shiiiiit" they all agreed.

"Outside" said James after a moment of reflection. They made their way out to stand in the wreckage of the garden, the three of them soaking in the utter carnage around them.

"Shit" choked Hagrid again, brushing tears away that were quickly replaced by more.

"Hagrid" said James "we think Volde-balls has gone, but he's still got people out there... we're going to need your help" he hesitated, casting a skeptical look over the half-giant, face blotchy with tears wondering if the gentle giant would be up to this big guns thought the ghost "Harry's going to need your help" he stressed, knowing how much the other man cared for his son. It had the desired affect and Hagrid's shoulders straightened and he flexed the umbrella between two hands that looked big enough and strong enough to tear people apart. A mean expression crossed his face.

"Wha' d'you need me t' do? Jus' you name it, an I'll do it"

"First go see Dumbledore..." Began James before being suddenly interrupted.

"Wait!" Sirius crouched and picked up a rock, "portus" the quick cast earned him a questioning glance from the other two. "Neville, they were the other side of the prophesy, they'll be after him too."

"Oh fuck! Get there" snapped James to Hagrid "tell them what happened here. Sirius and I are going into hiding, we'll come out when we can."

Rubeus Hagrid gave a decisive nod and snatched the thrown port key out of the air. His face was grim and angry as he disappeared in a swirl, leaving the man, the ghost and the baby in the garden alone.

Rubeus Hagrid reappeared with a gut-wrenching lurch half way along the drive to Longbottom manor and began sprinting, praying to every god he could think of that he wouldn't be too late. Lungs burning, he reached the steps leading up to the front door that was hanging off it's hinges, ignoring the slumped form in black robes and a white mask that lay crumpled on the bottom step. He could hear the screams coming from inside and launched himself up the stairs and through the doorway.

The entrance hall of Longbottom manor was a mess. The bodies of two more Death Eaters lay just inside and scorch marks decorated the walls next to the paintings that were alternating between screaming obscenities and pleading mercy. Two masked Death Eaters and the cackling form of Bellatrix Lestrange ignored the paintings as they cast torture curses at the huddled shapes of Frank and Alice Longbottom.

Hagrid roared with fury, ignoring his wand in favour of slamming a fist the size of a bowling ball into the head of the nearest masked figure who flew across the hall before stopping with a sickening crunch against one of the banister pillars. The other two turned and stared in shock at the furious giant, frozen for a deadly second. Seizing the advantage, Hagrid closed the distance between them with a desperate lunge.

"Rabastin! Die screaming, half-breed!" cried the last standing Death Eater Hagrid was now able to identify as Rudolphus Lestrange, as both Rudolphus and Bellatrix turned their wands on him.

Hagrid moved faster than he ever had before, still roaring his wordless battlecry, grabbing Bellatrix's hand and wand, jabbing it towards Rudolphus' face, even as he grabbed Rudolphus' hand and wand, yanking him forward and off balance. Suddenly there was silence.

The paintings looked on in shock as the giant many of them had watched carefully as he clumsily played with young Neville apparently holding the two remaining Death Eaters up. Hagrid tried to pull the wands from their hands, only to find them stuck. Bellatrix was looking in horror at the end of her wand that was now buried in her husband's left eye socket while Rudolphus let out a small moan of pain and horror.

Bellatrix Lestrange coughed in surprise. How had the clumsy half-breed managed to beat not just her, but her husband and his brother as well? She coughed again, feeling a sudden pain in her chest even as she tasted the bitter iron of blood in her mouth. She looked down to see her husbands wand, held now in broken fingers kept in place by Hagrid's oversized hand, disappearing into her chest. She felt a pain worse even than Voldemort's crucio as her lungs tried to breath around the tip of the wand and failed miserably.

"It's cold." Whimpered the most feared woman in magical Britain as blood trickled from her mouth, staring up into her husband's masked face.

"Bella" groaned her husband in shock and pain as his wife writhed in pain at the end of his wand. He groaned in pain again as her weight caused the wand to move agonisingly in his eye socket. Hagrid let go of Bellatrix's hand, allowing her limp body to slip to the floor her husband's wand still sticking from her chest. Now holding Rudolphus by broken wand hand and the scruff of his neck, he turned to regard the surviving Death Eater silently, the wand sticking comically from the hapless man's eye socket.

"Look out!" cried one of the paintings, "There's another one!"

"Avada Kedavra!" came the cry from behind him, even as Hagrid span and launched Rudolphus Lestrange towards the unknown assailant, throwing himself to one side. A green light flashed from the end of the man's wand and passed crackling through the space Hagrid had occupied a moment earlier as the human missile knocked his new assailant off his feet, leaving both of them crumpled at the base of the door frame.

Hagrid drew his trusty pink umbrella, swapping it to his left hand in favour of one of the wands on the floor before casting stunning spells at the three moaning bodies. He looked over his shoulder at the twitching forms of Frank and Alice. Somehow during the brief fight, Frank Longbottom had made his way over to his wife's side and was now cradling her tenderly in her arms, both of them shaking violently at the aftermath of the Cruciatus curse. Hagrid thought he saw Frank nod at him in thanks, but he could be too sure with the shaking.

The half giant moved cautiously towards the two stunned Death Eaters, tearing their robes into strips to use as bindings as he tied their hands securely. He frowned, recognising Barty Crouch Junior when he removed their masks, feeling just the slightist twinge of guilt as he flicked the wand in Rudolphus' eye further. He was glad that it wouldn't be himself that would have to sort out this mess.

As he looked out of the ruined doorway and down the driveway, he watched as the sun began rising over the nearby woods, casting a hopeful light against the chaos of the preceding darkness. Hagrid gave a tired sigh, turning towards the Longbottoms, approaching quietly for some reason not wanting to interrupt them now. He tried to cough quietly to attract their attention, but it came out closer to cannon blast than any thing else. Have to work on that one he thought to himself as they turned towards him. They both opened their mouths, trying to speak around the shakes that still plagued them. He shuffled his feet nervously.

"Helluva night, wannit?" he said awkwardly. Frank's jaw dropped open, working slowly up and down, an awkward rasping noise coming from his throat. After a moment Alice was making the strange noise as well, and Hagrid realised that they were laughing. He grinned sheepishly and allowed himself a small chuckle. "S'rry." He scratched the back of his neck "Never was sure wha' to say in these moments".

If anything, this seemed to make their laughter worse. "I'll go check on Nev for you, shall I?" Alice nodded gratefully, and Hagrid made his way upstairs. A short moment later, he was on his way back down, the still sleeping toddler cradled gently in his arms he passed him carefully to Frank, who seemed to be shaking marginally less than Alice, making sure that the child wasn't going to be dropped by nerve damaged fingers before making his way to the fireplace. Now this is gonna be an interestin' conversation he thought to himself as he grabbed a handful of Floo powder.

Outside the ruins of the Potter residence, Sirius and James looked at the empty space where Hagrid had been a moment before, each hoping that he would be able to reach the Longbottoms before any harm came to them. Sirius turned to the ghost of his friend, raising a quizzical eyebrow.

"Well then Prongs, what next?" James thought for a moment. Where could he send Sirius and his son that would keep them safe, both from Voldemort and his followers, but also from the others in the wizarding world that would want to have an influence on the rest of his life. He smiled as an idea came to him, they always say if you want to hide something, hide it in plain sight. James gave his best friend a ghostly grin.

"London."

The following evening, Rubeus Hagrid, Alastor Moody, Minerva McGonagall and the small number of the Order who were not involved in the post-Voldemort clean up operation were clustered in Dumbledore's office, where the headmaster was pacing angrily back and forth.

"What do you mean you can't tell me where Sirius took Harry?!" Protested Dumbledore, amazed that Hagrid was refusing to tell him "They could be in danger! Just look what happened to Frank and Alice!" Despite himself, the ancient leader of the Order of the Phoenix was beginning to get annoyed at his most loyal friend. Hagrid, meanwhile, had an expression that was an interesting combination of misery and defiance.

"They din' say did they?!" He said for what felt like the hundredth time.

As soon as the Aurors and medi-wizards had arrived at Longbottom Manor, he had floo'd Dumbledore who had joined him there moments later before apparating them both to the headmaster's office at Hogwarts. Throughout the day, reports had been coming in about the apparent defeat of Voldemort at the hands of the infant Harry Potter and Rubeus Hagrid had been awake for over thirty-six hours, and was now both mentally and physically exhausted. The moment he had told Dumbledore that Sirius had disappeared with Harry and the spirit of the departed James, he had become extremely irate, determined to try and find one or all of them using the strange and often noisy contraptions on the shelves of his office, so far with no effect, and no further reports of either of them could be heard.

"Any word from Remus?" Shaking heads all round prompted a further sigh of irritation "What about the Aurors – Moody, has there been any development on determining which spells were cast at Godric's Hollow?" Moody frowned, not liking the fact that he was now the focus of the headmaster's irritation. He cleared his throat.

"Not completely, there was no sign of Lilly or James' wands, so far we've assumed Black took them." Again the headmaster's mouth twisted in displeasure, an expression of annoyance on Moody's face as well at Sirius having made his job that much harder. "Got the other one though. It looks like there was a duel – against James no doubt, ties in with what Hagrid told us" he said, nodding towards the half-giant who was nearly asleep on his feet "ended with a killing curse; some dark magic traces in the front room but nothing surprising for a duel against You-Know-Who. Two more killing curses, presumably against Lilly, must have missed with the first one and hit her with the second – I guess he wasn't in the mood for another duel after killing James. Anyway, that was the last one he fired, maybe Black arrived in time to hit him in the back, but there's no sign of it."

"Nothing else?" asked Dumbledore desperately. Moody shuffled awkwardly, hating being asked for an answer he couldn't provide.

"Reports of trace amounts of some unknown magic. Nothing else yet, but the Unspeakables are looking into it as we speak."

Dumbledore sighed, resigned to the fact that, for now, Harry Potter and Sirius Black were missing.

A loud banging came from the window interrupting the tense silence. Dumbledore moved towards it, letting in a rather damp owl, deftly snagging the letter tied to its leg as it flew past to join Fawkes on his perch. The phoenix pulled his head from under his wing and looked at the owl suspiciously before shuffling along to make space and tucking his head under his wing again.

"What is it?" Asked McGonagall moving forward curiously. Dumbledore looked at the unknown owl, then back at the parchment. It was suddenly snatched from his hand by an irate Alistor Moody who threw it quickly onto the desk, glaring at it with both his real and prosthetic eye while casting several diagnostic charms on it. Dumbledore rolled his eyes at the antics of the paranoid Auror.

"Safe now?" he asked, with a tinge of sarcasm. Moody nodded and allowed Dumbledore to approach and open the letter.

"It's from Sirius!" exclaimed the old wizard excitedly, and everyone crowded round the desk to read over Dumbledore's shoulder.

Dear Albus and Order members.

I am writing this at the request of the spirit of James Potter and the words that follow are mostly his.

This evening, Lilly, Harry and I were attacked by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. We had entrusted Peter as our secret keeper, believing that Sirius would be too obvious a choice and that the not-so-obvious choice of Peter would give us an extra layer of protection. Sadly, we were mistaken. Peter betrayed us to the Dark Lord and Lilly and I are dead.

As soon as I had died, I returned as a ghost and was able to watch the Dark Lord cast the killing curse at Harry only for it to bounce off and hit Voldemort. I do not know how, though I Sirius and I will continue to investigate. I do not know whether he still survives in some form, but I believe his physical form is gone. Harry now bears a scar in the shape of a lightning bolt on his forehead unlike that I have ever seen. Though it does not seem to be troubling him at present, both Sirius and I will continue to monitor his recovery closely.

It is with great regret that I must inform you that there has been no sign of Lilly, and I feel that we will not see her again in this world.

I know you will not like what I am about to say, however it is my decision to make as Harry's father, and it is what I had discussed with Lilly before her passing and is supported by Sirius. This is what we both wished to happen should both of us fall in this war and is in accordance with both our last wills and testaments and can be verified by the goblins at Gringotts.

My son and heir, Harry James Potter, shall be raised by his godfather and lawful guardian, Sirius Orion Black, assisted by Remus John Lupin, until he is of age to take position as head of the Potter family.

While what I am asking of you next is not part of our wills, I hope you will accept it as my final wish. Sirius will go into hiding until he can determine that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has disappeared for good and that it is safe. In this he has, as always, my absolute trust to do what is right by my son.

I would like to say a final thank you to you all, for your friendship, smiles, and company throughout both mine and Lilly's life times. Though they were cut far too short, the people who we have met along the way have provided us with memories we could never dream of trading for more time, and we know we could trust all of you with the task ahead of Sirius. A special thank you to Hagrid, for being there at our end, and for always being there before it.

I hope to one day see you all again, in this life or the next.

So long, my friends.

James Potter.

With a deep sigh, Dumbledore slumped in to his chair, covering his eyes with a wrinkled, age spotted hand, unable to see the tears that many were letting fall unheeded. Hagrid wept unashamedly into a handkerchief the size of a table cloth and even Moody swiped once or twice at his real eye, muttering darkly about allergies.

Three hours earlier:

"Do you think that'll do it?" pondered James, looking over Sirius' shoulder as they got to the end of the letter.

Remus had joined them shortly after their arrival and had been caught up on the events of the evening in short order, joining them in the room Sirius had rented in a cheap muggle hotel about five minutes walk from Diagon Alley. They were now gathered around the battered table, discarded balls of crumpled paper and a half finished bottle of fire-whiskey showing the progress that had been made so far with their missive to the Order. Harry slept peacefully in the middle of one of the two lumpy beds that had been spelled into a semblance of comfort.

Sirius carefully kept his head down, staring at the paper in front of him. He gave a brief nod. Remus reached a shaking hand out for his glass of whiskey, knocking it back in a single gulp. He coughed hoarsely.

"Yeah, I reckon that will do it." James drifted around the table and looked at his two best friends. He rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Well at least Harry wont be left wanting for a softer, feminine touch with you two blubbering like school girls all the time."

Remus coughed again and swiped at his eyes.

"You know one thing I won't miss about James?" He asked Sirius, prompting a raised, questioning eyebrow "he could be a real prick sometimes." Sirius' nodded, tears still streaming down his face.

"No argument here."

"Hey, don't speak ill of the dead. Also I'm right here." James chided softly.

"He's got a point" muttered Sirius "even in death he can be a real prick."

"Fuck you both very much, let's see how cheerful you are after you've just been killed." The three men descended into a miserable silence, Sirius pouring three glasses of firewhiskey out. He slid one a little too enthusiastically along the table to Remus, who caught it just as it slid off the edge, pushing one across to James and pouring himself an extra large one that slopped onto the table.

"To James and Lilly" he mumbled, trying to reign in his emotions "the best friends a man could ask for."

"James 'n' Lilly" repeated Lupin, clinking Sirius' glass with his own before bumping it against the one on the table in front of James.

"Me and Lil's" said James. Sirius and Remus flickered from grief to amusement and sniggered as James' ghostly fingers went straight through the glass and he cursed in frustration. "Oh yeah, fricking hilarious" he snapped at them, serving only to increase their amusement. He opened his mouth wide and lowered his head over the glass, closing it and then lifting his head again with a sigh and a shake of his head. "Fan-fucking-tastic. Dead and I can't even drown my sorrows."

"Just like your bachelor party" said Remus with a small smile "shots without using your hands."

The three of them smiled at the memory and Remus tied the almost forgotten letter to the rental-owl's leg before sending it off. The rest of the night was spent in a blur of hazy plans for the future and reminiscences on the past. The highlight for James was discovering that as soon as a bottle of fire-whiskey was finished, it's presence also existed briefly in ghost form, allowing him to join in the drinking. The highlight for Sirius was discovering that ghosts can vomit due to too much alcohol just as well as the living – Remus might also have found this amusing had not the ghostly puke hit him square in the chest and passed straight through him.

Daily Prophet

Dark Lord Defeated

Infant Saviour of the Wizarding World Missing

Bethsemene Halfbrush

2/11/81

It is with great pleasure that we at the Daily Prophet can tell you that the war against the Dark Lord V. and his Death Eater followers is finally over!

Sources at the Ministry of Magic have confirmed that late on the evening of 31 October, 1981, the Dark Lord met his end. Though details remain limited, so far we can confirm that on the evening of Halloween, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named approached the house of James Potter and Lilly Potter nee Evans, and their infant son Harry with the intention of murdering all those who resided within. The house, located in Godric's Hollow, had been protected by the Fidelius charm, which should have ensured their safety, the Potters chose Peter Pettigrew, a friend since their first days at Hogwarts. Sadly, Pettigrew betrayed the Potters to his master, who attacked without mercy in the late hours of the 31st.

While an exact account of the evening in question is unavailable, we can now confirm that both James and Lilly Potter, and Lord V. perished that night, the only survivor being Harry James Potter, aged one year and three months. While official channels are providing only scant information, unnamed sources within the Ministry have confirmed that the killing curse was cast at the infant Potter, a curse which he has, amazingly, survived.

Albus Dumbledore, one of the bastions of the fight against the Dark Forces, has confirmed the child's survival and though he has refused, so far, to reveal Harry Potter's location, he did have this to say:

"It is with great sadness that I must confirm the loss of James and Lilly Potter, good students and better friends. This sadness is tempered only by the knowledge that in their final moments, they contributed to the defeat of the Dark Lord who has plagued our land for too long. They leave behind their only son, who is currently being cared for by close friends in accordance with the parent's final wishes."

When questioned as to the defeat of the Dark Lord and the continuing celebrations that have caused official obliviator teams a significant amount of work, Minister for Magic Millicent Bagnold, said "I assert our inalienable right to party" and would not be drawn further on the matter.

Other friends of the Potters, most notably Sirius Black, childhood friend and best man to James Potter, godfather to Harry Potter, leads this reporter to speculate that Harry Potter is now being raised by the heir to the Black family, though so far we have been unable to confirm or deny this theory.

In other news, the half-giant Rubeus Hagrid, groundskeeper at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, is being hailed as a hero by the noble Longbottom family. Shortly after the attack on the Potter residence, Mr Hagrid arrived at the Longbottom manor to find them under attack by four Death Eaters. Despite never having completed his formal magical education, the groundskeeper leapt to action, killing one and incapacitating the remaining three in short order.

A spokesperson for the Longbottom released the following statement:

"In the early hours of November 1st, six Death Eaters attacked Longbottom Manor, seeking answers about the disappearance of their master, suspecting that Frank and Alice Longbottom would hold information as staunch opponents of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. When no information was forth coming, the Cruciatus Curse was used to a degree that permanent damage was highly likely. It is with great relief that we can report that Rubeus Hagrid, a long time friend to both Frank and Alice arrived and, with no thought to personal safety, was able to subdue the Death Eaters until Ministry officials could arrive."

Ministry sources praised Hagrid for his quick action in saving the Longbottoms, while staff at St Mungos confirmed that Frank and Alice Longbottom, both Aurors, were currently undergoing treatment for extended exposure to the Cruciatus curse but were expected to make a full recovery.

Though names of all the captured Death Eaters have not yet been released, it can be confirmed that Bellatrix Lestrange nee Black and her husband Rudolphus Lestrange, have been captured while his brother Rabastin Lestrange is now deceased. The fourth Death Eater remains as yet unidentified.

A/N: Well that's chapter one, again, please read and review. While I appreciate the black humour of the recently departed and shell-shocked may be slightly off, a) it's just a story and b) we all deal with grief differently and who's to say how we all deal with death until it happens to us?